Campaign of the Month:
January 2015

Skies of Glass

Mental Checks

You have a keen recollection of events from your life and often logical or “common sense” solutions to problems. Note that Mental checks aren’t skill checks, but function very similarly to them.

Check

The GM may call upon a character to make a Mental check for one of two reasons: to remember past details from the campaign or the character’s history (fundamentally representing the character’s memory) or to draw insights and connections (representing a character’s mental faculties). A successful Mental check indicates that you recall the information or make the appropriate deduction. When you make a Mental check, you roll a d20 and add your highest mental ability score modifier (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma). If the detail or insight would fall under the purview of another skill, the character may substitute that other skill for their Mental check (meaning a well-trained scholar would often have a much better chance of recalling minor details related to their areas of study).

Mental checks may not be used as a substitute for Knowledges or other skills, but can let a character recall general knowledge or cultural “wisdom”. For example, a character catching sight of a dragon they cannot otherwise identify might use a Mental check to recall a picture of such a beast from a storybook and recall the cultural lore of “Princess kidnapping wealth hoarders, at least in the stories”, the common knowledge that they’re “Flying magic reptiles the exhale burning death”, and the sage advice of “Run, hide, pray – in that order”. Mental checks drawing upon such wisdom, especially in regards to legendary stories, superstition, or common “old wives tales”, are often rife with misinformation along with any actually helpful information.